Science Fair Project - Update

I know many of you are probably wondering what ever happened with the Science Fair project. Well, Kaylea has remained dedicated to finishing the project and has been working diligently on it. So far, she has completed the research phase; written the report; made the graph; and now she is working on her board. I am hoping that I will be able to post the final project this weekend. Stay tuned........

We Have School Pictures

Yes, the school pictures have arrived. Now, aren't they good? See I didn't lie.

Now we will just pray that the yearbook staff takes mercy on Kaylea and uses this photo instead of her 1st attempt. You can read about Kaylea's "Hey, Kool Aid" picture here, if you haven't already.

Thumbs Up For Wonderworks!

Yesterday, Mr. Bob and Auntie M. gave Kaylea a reward for her awesome report card by taking her to Wonderworks (and yes, Bub and I tagged along, also) I didn't really know what to expect, especially from the looks of the upside down building that you see from the street. I guess I would compare it to Imageworks in the Imagination Pavilion at Epcot, only on a lot smaller scale. I have seen it described as an amusement park for your mind, and it really is. We all had a blast!

Kaylea loved climbing the rock wall. It was a little harder than what she is use to, though.

She did manage to make it about half way to the top. Yea Kaylea!

And, then, Aunt Missy decided to ride the Extreme 360. They strap you into a bicycle looking contraption and then it whirls you around in circles, taking you backwards and forwards and upside down. I think a better name for it would be the Barf-O-Matic!

If you don't do climbing walls or the pukey rides, there are plenty of other things that you will enjoy. They have several interactive displays such as a bed of nails you can lay on; a bubble room where you can make ginormous bubbles; an optical illusion art gallery; airplane and spaceship simulators; and the list goes on and on. It really is a great place for the entire family and you might even learn a thing or two amidst all of the fun. I am wondering why it is that Kaylea hasn't been there on a field trip, yet - hmmmm.

I would highly recommend Wonderworks to anyone!

Note to all of the Knox County readers out there - Wonderworks has Knox County Days underway until Feb 2. Basically, bring your Knox County I.D. and make a donation of a few school supplies at the door and you will get in for $10 per person (that is 50% off the normal admission price).

Kaylea's Feeling Icky

Yes, we have a sick child at our house. Well, I think she's sick, anyway. Yesterday when I picked her up from school she said, "Momma, I think you need to make an appointment for me to see the Doctor." She went on to say that her throat was really sore, she had a bad cough and the night before she felt like she was going to throw up. When we got home I took her temperature, but it was normal. After dinner, we went to Walgreens and stocked up on Throat Lozenges, Triamenic Cough and Runny Nose meltaway strips (way awesome product, no more having to measure liquid), and Children's Motrin. When we got home I told her to take a long hot shower and then get ready for bed. Honestly, she looked and sounded terrible. You know, droopy eyes, dragging around, scratchy voice and croupy cough. I guess it was about 7:30 when we laid down and she fell asleep almost immediately. Unfortunately for her she didn't stay asleep. Her cough kept waking her up and she would get up and get more throat lozenges.

This morning I let her sleep in and set-up a Doctor's appointment for her at 10:30. Of course, the first thing they tested for was Strep, but it came back negative - Thank God! Then the Doctor looked at her ears, nose, throat and listened to her chest. The verdict - everything was clear. I was told to keep on the Triamenic during the day but to give her Atuss DS at night. Supposedly it will help her sleep; great I get to drug my kid!

She says her throat is feeling better, but the cough is still there. Who knows what kind of bug she has. We'll keep our fingers crossed that it doesn't get any worse.

The Report Card Came! The Report Card Came! She's An Honor Student Again!

Yeah Kaylea! She made the "A" Honor Roll. She even got an "E" in Gym. You go girl!!!! (That was one of my "C" subjects!)

The only area we have to work on is the whole "Avoids Unnecessary Talking" thing. I don't thing the "N" stands for Neato.

Oh well, the child can't be perfect, now can she?

Mommy Has Her Own Blog, Too!

Yes, it is true. I have started my own blog. I hope all of Kaylea's readers (all 4 of you) will enjoy reading about my random thoughts, also.

Go check it out.

My Crazy Little Mixed Up World

Another Story From Our Little Blondy

Bub and Kaylea had some bonding time last week while I was feeling a little under the weather. Bub was going to fix dinner for Kaylea and asked her what she would like. Well, of course, she wanted his famous chicken noodle soup. He makes it by using Lipton Chicken Noodle Soup mix and then adding spaghetti so there are lots of extra noodles. This is their little thing that they love to make and eat - me not so much, though - but to each his own.

After Bub made the soup and fixed a bowl for Kaylea she told him she needed some hot sauce for her soup. Apparently, she had watched her cousin add hot sauce to chicken noodle soup and wanted to try it, also. This was rather shocking to Bub because Kaylea won't even eat black pepper (or anything that looks like it might have black pepper in it). He told Kaylea that hot sauce is hot (thus, the name) but she was insistent. So, he got the Texas Pete and gave it to her. He just stood back and watched her give her soup several drops of the stuff. When she put the first bite in her mouth she started waving her hand in front of her face and blowing air out of her mouth. She finally swallowed the soup and then ran to the kitchen and got an ice cube. She came back and put the ice cube in her soup. After the ice cube had melted she tried another bite of her soup. She had the same reaction, then went into the kitchen and got another ice cube. She came back and put the second ice cube in her soup. After it melted, she repeated her taste test, again. Then she looked up at Bub and said, "Wow, Daddy that soup sure it hot. This is the second ice cube I have put in it and it is still too hot for me to eat." Barry just shook his head and said, "Kaylea, the soup is hot from the Hot Sauce you put in it. Ice cubes won't cool it off!"

Bless her heart!

The Hard Facts Of Life

Kaylea says the darnedest things!

With Kaylea approaching the time in her life where she will become a young "lady", she and I have been having discussions about the changes that she will experience in the coming years. I wasn't sure when was the appropriate time to start "the talks" but found that it was a necessity a few months ago. We have talked candidly about all of the changes her body will be going through and what she should expect. I told her when she had her menstrual cycle she might have stomach cramps, a back ache, bloating, and a head ache, but most of all she will probably get very cranky. She just looked at me and said, "Do you have your menstrual cycle EVERYDAY?"

Kids - you gotta love them!

Coping With Amblyopia, Otherwise Known As Lazy Eye

When Kaylea was in first grade she began complaining about not being able to see very well. I asked her teacher if Kaylea could have a vision screening. Her teacher filled out the paperwork and we waited. The day the nurse gave Kaylea her vision test, I happened to be substituting for Kayela's teacher. The nurse brought Kaylea back to the room and called me over to the door. She was unaware that I was Kaylea's mom. She told me that I needed to send a note home to Kaylea's parents and have them take her for an eye exam. I explained that I was Kaylea's mom and asked what the problem was. She informed me that Kaylea appeared to have some vision problems and would probably need glasses. She didn't know if the test was accurate because of Kaylea's age and the lack of reliability when testing children. She advised following up with an eye doctor.

That afternoon I let Bub know what the nurse said and we made an appointment for both Kaylea and me at the Wal Mart vision center. I was needing to get my contact prescription renewed so we thought we would take her in with me. Imagine our shock when the Optometrist told us that we really needed to take Kaylea to a specialist. He said that if the test he had given her was accurate, she most likely had Amblyopia "Lazy Eye" and we needed to see a Pediatric Ophthalmologist, immediately.

Luckily, we were able to get in with the specialist fairly quickly. When they tested her, our worst fear was verified. Kaylea was legally blind in her left eye. She could not even see the largest letter on the eye chart. Basically, her brain had quit communicating with her left eye and the vision was dying in that eye. Her overall vision was 20/20, but her right eye was doing all of the work. The Doctor told us that we would have to begin treatment immediately because we were working against time. Kaylea was 7 years old at that time and most children reach visual maturity between the ages of 7 and 9. Up until a child reaches visual maturity the brain can be coached into communicating with the "lazy eye" again by patching the strong "working" eye. The treatment that was prescribed for Kaylea was to patch her right eye for 4 hours each day. Also, she had to start wearing glasses to try to correct the vision as best as possible in the left eye. Her glasses had a thick lens on the left and a normal, no prescription, lens on the right.

Bub and I tried to get her as excited as possible about the whole process. We let her pick out her glasses frames and I even ordered special eye patches that had luau flowers, princess crowns, hearts, stars, etc. on them. Anything to make her think they were neat and want to wear them. Of course, as her parents (and adults), we realized the severity of the situation. Kaylea, on the other hand, didn't. She was OK with the glasses because some of the other children in her class had gotten glasses, also. She thought they were cool. However, she wanted nothing to do with the patches. She cried, screamed, fought and begged so that she wouldn't have to wear them. We were lucky in the respect that most of the time she could get her 4 hours of patching done after school, but she still didn't want to do it. My heart broke for her every time she cried and begged me not to wear it. She became very self conscious and paranoid from the experience. She would always say, "Mommy they are staring at me. They said I look weird."

Last summer, we thought we had won the battle. The Doctor told us Kaylea's vision had improved and they were going to let her go through the summer without patching to see if the improved vision would hold with her just wearing her glasses. Well, when we went for our last check up the vision had slipped in the left eye again. This was good news / bad news. The bad news was that she had not reached visual maturity and we were going to have to start patching again (only 2 hours a day this time). The good news was that she had not reached visual maturity and we were still able correct the problem with patching. (Kaylea didn't really think that was such good news!)

As a Mom, this is one of the hardest things I have had to deal with. Everyone wants their child to be perfect. We want the best for them in every way. I never wanted her to have to feel like she is different. I never wanted her to have her feelings hurt by a supposed "best friend" who wouldn't sit by her because her patch looked weird. I never wanted her to have self confidence or body image issues, especially at such a young age. All I know is Kaylea has dealt with the situation a lot better than I would have. When I was little I was so painfully shy that I couldn't stand the thought of being looked at or noticed. Kaylea, however, loves to be the center of attention.

As of now, we are still patching 2 hours a day. Kaylea has had the prescription changed in her glasses so that the lenses are almost equal widths. And we still have our battles over wearing the patch. I will give Kaylea credit where credit is due, though. As she has gotten older, she has learned to deal with the patching a little better. I think she now realizes that we fight with her because we love her and we just want what is best for her. This is one of those things in life that a child can't truly understand and appreciate until they grow up and have children of their own, though.

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

No, I am not referring to Christmas or Halloween or even Easter. Oh no, this is WAY BETTER!!!

!!!!!!!!!! IT'S GIRL SCOUT COOKIE TIME !!!!!!!!!

Yes, Girl Scout Cookie order taking began yesterday. don't worry though, the green vested militia won't be camping in front of Kroger and Walmart just yet. The cookies won't be here for another few weeks.

So for all of you Thin Mint fiends and Tagalong junkies get your cupboards cleared and your tummies ready. Soon you will be able to replenish your stockpile for another year.

And yes, Kaylea will be contacting you soon so that she can perfect her selling techniques. You know the ones:

• The high pressure technique, "is that ALL, you need to buy more than that!"
• The heart string technique, "all the other girls in my troop have sold a lot more than me."
• The self serving technique, "Pappy you need to buy two boxes of these for me."
• And lastly, the guilt technique; nothing said just an irresistible pouty face being made. This is probably the most powerful technique in her arsenal.

So get ready readers; here they come.

(Man o man, a girl can't get a break; I just threw out all of the leftover cookies and candies from the holiday baking. I guess I can start that diet in February, no that's Valentines. How about March, no the cookies will be here then. It will have to be April, but wait a minute that's my birthday. Oh crap, I guess I will be fat when I turn 40.)

Kaylea is Trilingual!

Not a whole lot going on in our little corner of East TN. Just getting back into the swing of things after the Winter Break. The third six weeks ended Monday, and currently we are anxiously awaiting Kaylea's report card. School has always been easy for Kaylea (until this year, that is). Now, she is really starting to realize what it means to have to work and study to get those A's that she likes so much. Last six weeks she made her first B. I was kinda hoping she would be a little upset by the grade. (not totally devastated, but a little bit upset would be OK) But of course, she was neither! She thought there was nothing wrong with a B; she thought they were really good. I told her she was correct, but A's were better!

Of course, Mom would have been thrilled if my sister and I had been A / B students when we were in school. Unfortunately, though, I made my fair share of C's over the years (and we won't even talk about Auntie M's report cards ;) I remember Mom and me arguing about the abundance of C's on one of my report cards and me trying to convince her that the mediocrity of a C was just fine. After all, a C is described as "average" which is what she should want for her child. Subsequently, if I wasn't average, then I was some kind of freak (I think I was in 8th grade, which would explain the thought process, hugh?) I continued my argument by explaining that "average" meant that most kids were making them and I was normal for making them, too. Mom didn't really buy my argument, though.

One of the subjects that has given Kaylea the most challenges is English. I guess I shouldn't be that surprised by this. You see, when Kaylea was in 1st grade she argued with me and was adamant that she didn't even speak English. If I remember correctly, Kaylea was telling me about learning a Spanish word while watching Dora the Explorer. I was very impressed and asked her how to say the word in English. She was quick to tell me she didn't speak English. I was rather confused and corrected her. She continued to argue with me saying she DIDN'T speak English. I finally got tired of the arguing and said, "Fine, Kaylea, if you don't speak English then what do you speak?" Her response was, "American!" DOINK!!!

Now, I wouldn't argue with her if she told me she didn't speak English, but she speaks Hillbilly, instead. That is the truth. The child can't say crayon to save her life; she says crown. She doesn't call me "Mommy" or even "Mom"; she calls me "Mama" (Bub and I find ourselves quite frequently breaking out into the Judd's rendition of Mama He's Crazy after she calls for me). She doesn't say "pants"; she says "britches." And yesterday while standing in Coldwater Creek she was quick to tell me she needed to go to the bathroom because she "had the gut ache." What a proud moment!!!!

Now that I think about it, we should be thrilled if she gets a B in English, seeing as, they don't give grades in American Hillbilly. Bless her heart!

Daughter Of The Year Goes To Kaylea!!!!

....and Mom of the Year (in the lousy category) goes to me. In case any of you out there have ever doubted the fablousness of my daughter, just sit back and read this.

As you are aware, from reading the Science Fair post, yesterday we began working on the experiment phase of Kaylea's project. Kaylea was very excited about making an entry in the Science Fair. The entry was not a requirement for the 3rd graders and she was excited because she was going to be one of only a few children in her grade that were participating.

As I mentioned before, the material for the Science Fair was sent home several months ago (I believe the beginning of October). I looked over the requirements and dates at that time and then filed (ha) the paper on the top of my computer desk where all of the things that need to be dealt with go. Pretty much since the day the paper came home, Kaylea has been pestering me to get started on the project. I just didn't see any need to start that early since the Science Fair wasn't until February (so I thought). I wanted her to wait so that the research would be fresh in her mind (and also because I have a BAD habit of procrastinating).

Today, I dug to the bottom of the paper pile on the desk because I needed to know the dimension requirements for the display boards. I thought it would be neat to take Kaylea to the store and let her pick out all of the "pretties" for her board. Well, imagine my shock and sickness when I discovered that her school Science Fair in TOMORROW! YES, it is tomorrow! The date in February that I had ingrained in my head is the date of the county-wide Science Fair. Boy o boy, did I screw up!!!!!!!! Now I only had to figure out a way tell my daughter without causing too much therapy in the future.

As I drove to school this afternoon, I rehearsed the impending conversation with her in my head. I have to admit I was very nervous about telling her. Not because she would know that I am not perfect (I have proven that many times over) but because I hate to think that I am causing her any type of sadness, disappointment or grief. The last thing on earth I want to do is let down my little girl, and in my opinion I had let her down in a big way!

When I picked her up I told her that I had something to tell her and she was probably going to be mad at me, AND THAT WAS O.K. Then, I told her I was really sorry for the mistake I had made. Finally, I told her that she was not going to be able to participate in the Science Fair because I had not written down the correct date.

You know, she just looked at me and said, "It's o.k. Mom. Parents make mistakes sometimes, too." Can you believe it? Wow, what a kid! I know she is great but let's face it she is NINE. Most of the time, her little universe has her in the middle with everyone else orbiting around her. But today, she was so mature. She wasn't disappointed, at least she didn't show it if she was. She was so understanding and accepting and even gave me a hug and told me not to worry about it.

I'm sure some of you probably think I made way too big a deal about this and maybe I did. I just know that it makes me sick to think of letting her down in any way.

Bub and I discussed the situation and pondered our options at this point. We both think it is important for Kaylea to finish her project. She needs to be able to have the satisfaction of completing the project that she has been looking forward to. Also, it won't hurt her to learn the steps involved in conducting an experiment and completing a Science Fair project. So, we put our heads together (Daddy, Kaylea and Me) and decided that when she is finished Kaylea can enter her project into the first ever Curiously Kaylea Cyber Science Fair. Yes, our little Blog will be having its own Science Fair. I will post lots of pictures of her project along with the results of our test when everything is complete. Of course, we are going to need some judges for our Cyber Science Fair. If you would like to be one of our judges, just leave a little comment when you see her finished project on the Blog. She will be anxiously awaiting your feedback.

The Science Fair Project

A few months ago Kaylea jumped into the car after school and was bubbling with excitement. She says, "Guess what Mom? I signed up to do a Science Fair Project. We don't have to do one, but I really want to because I love Science. And we get extra credit for it!"

Well, I was immediately taken back to 8th grade when I had to do a Science Fair Project and my Mom did the whole thing for me. You see, I was not exactly a star student in Science and had no interest in doing any kind of project that would be on display for the entire school to view. So I picked a topic that had something to do with hair follicles, or something like that (I'm sure Mom could tell you in more detail the subject) and my Mom "helped" me. Actually, she did the whole thing. She wrote the report (but I typed it, I think), she supplied the pictures, and she even did my board. I remember it was real pretty and I was very proud of it (her).

Though I had never been a real Science whiz, I was kind of excited about Kaylea's project. I thought it would be a lot of fun and a good opportunity for Kaylea and me to work together. When we got home, I read the material that was sent home from school and had to chuckle. It clearly said that the project is to be completed by the child or it will be disqualified. First of all, she is nine; she has no idea what a Science Fair project is let alone what type of topic to choose. Second, I wouldn't be doing it for her I will just be helping her with it. Well, that afternoon I began Googling "science fair projects for children." After I had compiled a list of about ten to fifteen different projects I let her choose which one she wanted to do. Well, she chose to find out which brand of soap would dissolve the quickest in water.

The Science Fair is next month so we are going to begin today. I have already formulated our plan of attack on the experiment. We are going to start with four bars of soap (different brands but equal weight). Each day we are going to let the bars soak in a container of water for 20 minutes and then weigh them. She will be recording the weights each day for two weeks. In the end she will make a chart to show how much each bar dissolved each day. Sounds easy enough and she should be able to do this without too much help from me (ya think?)

I was telling Auntie M about the project and all of my ideas for decorating the board. "I was thinking she could get a blue board and cover it with bubble stickers and put a rubber ducky on the table and......." Then Auntie abruptly stopped me and said, "Jen, don't be one of THOSE moms. Make sure it is Kaylea's project and not yours. It needs to be her work, no matter how bad it may look."

Well, this got me thinking. Maybe I am trying to finally do my Science Fair Project from 8th grade. Just like my Mom was trying to finally do the project she never completed. Wow, what a revelation. OK, the cycle will stop with me! I will let Kaylea do her project her way! I will only offer assistance when asked or needed! I will make Kaylea be responsible for this assignment!

But, I just have a few questions. Do you think it would be over the top if Kaylea had a strobe light on her table? Or how about a boom box playing Splish Splash? Or how about if she wore her robe and shower cap to the Science Fair? OOPs, there I go again, sorry!

No, really, I will let her do it herself ;)

Vacation Is Almost Over...Boo Hoo!

As usual, time flies when your having fun. Tomorrow we will be leaving our little oceanfront paradise do drive back to Tennessee. We have had such a good trip, getting to spend time with family. We are not looking forward to leaving, but Kaylea and I are anxious to get home to Daddy and Angel. If they were here with us we could just stay forever.

Yesterday, we took a day trip to Charleston. While we were there, we went on a tour of Fort Sumter. Kaylea was interested in the old structure; however, I did have to explain to her, on her level, the importance of the Fort. Since it was the site of the first battle of the Civil War, I also had to explain to her the purpose of the Civil War and its importance in US history. Hopefully, she learned something on the tour and will be able to go back and share her discovery with her classmates.

After the tour we went to lunch and then walked through the outdoor market. Kaylea found a beautiful handmade Russian Matryoshka Doll that she fell in love with. She decided that she wanted the doll as her souvenir from the trip. It is truly gorgeous! If you are unfamiliar with the Matryoshka Doll, it is a hand carved and hand painted nesting doll. When you open the outer doll, there is a smaller doll inside and so on and so on. Normally, there are five or six dolls that nest inside one another. The doll that Kaylea found has ten dolls that nest. The smallest is about the size of a peppercorn. This will be a collectible for her to treasure for many years.

Today, we stayed on the island and went out to Salty Dog for lunch. Then, of course, we had to do a little shopping. We can't take a vacation without some type of shopping going on. Upon returning to the condo, we walked down to the beach to look for shells and draw in the sand.

Though we have missed Bub/Daddy terribly bad; it has been nice for Kaylea and me to have a little bit of Mommy/Daughter time. She has been such a good girl and I am so proud of her. She can really be a pickle at times; but moreover, she is a very kind, caring and loving child. I treasure each moment with her, the good and the picklish ones.

Good-bye vacation! We will see you again in a few months.

Greetings From Hilton Head BBBBBeach......Man It's Cold!!

As many of you know, Kaylea and I have gone to Hilton Head Island on an impromptu vacation with Auntie M, Mr. Bob, Memommy and Mr. Jimmy. We all were sad that Bub couldn't extend his vacation and join us, but we will make sure and bring him back a t-shirt. So far the trip has been very UN-beachy. That would probably be due to the cold weather and cutting winds. I haven't even made it down to the ocean yet; however, Auntie M badgered Mr. Bob into going down to the beach with her and Kaylea this afternoon. I don't know about you, but it doesn't seem like a place I would want to be under the current conditions.

Kaylea on the beach, BRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!

Kaylea wrote, "I Love Vacation" in the sand

Kaylea is having a blast, though. She doesn't care how cold it is outside; she is on vacation at the beach. I think she will probably live near the ocean when she grows up because she loves being near the water. Today, we took a day trip to Savannah, another one of Kaylea's favorite vacation spots. Unfortunately, she was very disappointed when we were not able to eat lunch at Paula Deen's restaurant. Apparently they were closed for the week to do some yearly maintenance. Boo for us - yeah for her employees!

We, also, walked on River Street and stopped in at the Savannah Candy Kitchen. It isn't a trip to Savannah without getting a few pralines and some taffy. It was really too cold to do much walking so we all decided to take a tour of the city in a nice HEATED trolley. I think the tour was a little too much excitement for Kaylea because she was passed out on my shoulder within fifteen minutes. I was able to wake her when we stopped at Saint John the Baptist Cathedral. She was very intrigued by the Holy water pool at the entrance to the cathedral and the rosary candles at the alter. You could tell she wasn't a good Catholic girl, however. She was trying to figure out how to drink out of the Holy water pool and lit about five candles before I could stop her. I tried to cover for her error by explaining to her the purpose for the rosary candles and telling her since she lit five candles, she needed to say five prayers. We used the kneeling bench and prayed, at least I think that is what she was doing. If not she was at least acting like she was praying. It was a lot of new stuff for a little Baptist girl from East Tennessee to take in. She was very interested in their faith and practices, though. I guess I can be thankful for that. I always try to emphasize to her that our religion is not the only religion and she seems to take interest in learning about how others worship. Thank goodness she looks at things that are different with curiosity and wonder instead of shying away and just thinking they are weird.

Well, that is enough for today. We are going to bed so we can get up early in the morning and head out to Charleston for the day. I'm sure the day will be filled with new adventures for all of us.

Welcome 2008

Wow, 2008 is here already. Where has the time gone. This year I will be turning the BIG 4-0 and my baby will be 10. I did the math this morning, while watching UT play in the Outback Bowl in Tampa, FL, and I was reminded that 15 years ago today Bub and I had our first date while watching UT play Boston College in the Hall of Fame Bowl in Tampa, FL. In so many ways, that first date weekend seems like it was just yesterday and in other ways it seems like it was a lifetime ago.



As most people do, I am making several New Year's resolutions this year. I make the same ones every year: lose weight, exercise more, drink more water and less Diet Coke, and eat more meals at home. Hopefully, I will be able to stick to them this year (as I type this I am eating Chex Party Mix and drinking a Diet Coke). Oh well, I can't really start them today because we are leaving for Hilton Head tomorrow and you know I can't diet while I am on vacation - that wouldn't be any fun now would it?



I asked Kaylea if she was going to make any New Year's resolutions. She replied with a very puzzled, "Hugh?" I then had to explain to her what a resolution was (and no I didn't say it was something that people say they will do and then don't). She said her resolution will be to read more. You have to understand the humor in this resolution; Kaylea loves to read! She was "Star Reader" and had the most AR (Accelerated Reader for all of you who don't have kids) in her second grade class last year. This year she has started reading the Harry Potter series.

Of course I was thinking, of all things the child could choose to work on, reading would not be anywhere near the top of the list. I guess I was hoping she would say something like, "Oh Mommy, I am going to listen better." Or, "Mommy, I am going to work on not having the sassy mouth this year." Or, "Mommy, I am not going to argue as much." Or I would have even been happy with, "I am going to clean up after myself." But, of course, I didn't get any of those responses because Kaylea thinks she needs to read more. Well, I didn't discourage her with her choice for her resolution, but trust me I will be making suggestions for additional resolutions as the opportunities present themselves. And trust me, they WILL. I will probably be able to offer up a few suggestions before the day in done.



We hope each of you have a safe and prosperous new year. I will keep up the Blog and the silly stories about Kaylea. If we can make you smile, laugh, or touch your heart in some way, then we are accomplishing what we set out to do. Thank you for staying plugged into our life through this silly little thing we call the Internet.



Love and best wishes for 2008!

Bub, Jennilu, Kaylea and Angel